


When the Music Fades

by Jane_Doe07



Category: Bellarke - Fandom, The 100 (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Short One Shot, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-06
Updated: 2018-07-06
Packaged: 2019-06-06 09:01:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15191372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jane_Doe07/pseuds/Jane_Doe07
Summary: Post 5.08.  On their way to Eden, Bellamy, Clarke, Madi, Monty and Harper camp for the night and enjoy a few fleeting moments of peace beneath the stars.





	When the Music Fades

**Author's Note:**

> I have to thank the ladies on twitter for this inspiration. I really wanted to write a one shot for this hiatus, but was having such a hard time coming up with anything decent. So thank you so much for this idea my lovelies! 
> 
> Very minor plot, medium angst, lots of fluff and wholly unrealistic things. What's not to love? :D 
> 
> OH! And I recommend listening to two songs before (or after) reading this because OF REASONS. 
> 
> Golden Years - David Bowie  
> With Wings- Amy Stroup
> 
> They were also my inspiration for this fic. :) 
> 
> Enjoy!

They could have driven through the night if they wanted.  Four of them knew how to drive the rover, they could have taken shifts while the others dozed.  But when the sky turned black and the stars glittered in the darkness, Bellamy had pulled the rover over by a dune and no one had protested.  They were bone tired, all of them, emotionally and physically from the past day's events.  Bellamy had got them out of the bunker, and away from Wonkru.  Monty and Harper were very reluctant at first, but after explaining what he had done and the danger it posed for them once Octavia woke up, Bellamy got them to concede and leave.  Octavia would more than likely hold Monty in some way responsible for the algae and her poisoning.  It was better this way. 

Madi was almost more difficult to convince.  Having to explain things that are so much larger than the little world of two she grew up in wasn't easy.  She was confused and irritated, and did not want to leave her childhood idol.  But eventually, the trust and love Madi had in Clarke wore out and they both left the bunker behind, finally to return home.  Clarke missed the valley fiercely, the trees, the flowers, even the air.  At least the sky was the same, even in this wasteland.  The stars shone just as brightly here in the desert as they did in Eden.

Clarke tore her gaze from the sky and stoked their camp's fire.  Monty and Harper stood by the rover, talking quietly amongst themselves, Madi sat beside her, taking down her braids, letting her long brown hair shine in the fire light.  Bellamy sat across from them, eyes fixed on the ground, arms wrapped around himself. 

He had done the unthinkable.  He had taken Octavia out of the equation in an attempt to, at best, find peace, at worst, get his friends out of Polis and away from Wonkru.  Sadly they had only succeeded in the later.  But Clarke was still so thankful.  She wouldn't have to face execution or live long enough to see Madi die in battle.  The opportunity Bellamy had given them was no small concession.  Not to her. 

She wished that knowledge made her feel better when she looked at Bellamy, but it didn't.  His pain was her pain.  No matter if her instinct to protect Madi overruled everything else, no matter how much time and distance had changed things between them.  Her heart still broke with his.  For his. 

"You found it!?" Monty's voice crashed through Clarke's thoughts.  He stood by the open rover door, eyes wide, a small object in his hand.  Bellamy raised his head to look. 

It was Maya's ipod. 

Clarke gave Monty a small smile and nodded. 

"I found it with Jasper's things," she explained. 

Monty's expression went from surprised to sad to content as he palmed the device.  He looked to Clarke, gesturing to the rover. 

"Can I?" He asked, eagerness in his voice. 

Clarke shrugged, "As long as you play something good."

Monty smiled and began hooking the ipod up to the rover.  Clarke wasn't worried.  No one was coming for them.  Not here and not any time soon.  Monty could listen and reminisce to his heart's content.  For the moment- however brief- they had nothing to really fear. 

Madi's arms wrapped around Clarke's shoulders in a quick, strong hug.  She pulled away, off to 'help' Monty and Harper pick a song.  Madi loved the music, and if Clarke had any reservations about letting them play it, they vanished as she saw Madi's smile and enthusiasm return. 

She even noticed Bellamy's lips curl in amusement at the young girl's exuberance as she made faces at Monty's selections. 

She had yet to really speak to Bellamy.  Not since he walked through her cell doors, delivering her to freedom for the second time since he landed.  He told her what he had done and what needed to happen, but they hadn't had time for more than that. 

The first notes of an upbeat song began to fill their small corner of the world. 

It was a good song.

Monty increased the volume as Madi spun around the camp, bringing smiles to everyone.  She was an infectious little thing.  Gone was the armor of Wonkru and the braids of a novitiate.  In their place danced the wild and joyful girl from Shallow Valley.  Full of life and spirit and colour.  Clarke wished she could keep her just like this; safe, happy, surrounded by friends.  She knew that wouldn't always be possible, but tonight, she could pretend. 

Madi skipped around the blazing fire, hair fanning out around her like a veil.  It didn't take long before Harper dragged Monty away from the rover, humorously spinning him.  The chorus rang out and the three of them swung their arms and their hips around the fire and around each other, laughter echoing against the dune all along the way. 

Half out of breath, Madi plopped herself down beside Bellamy.  Clarke couldn't hear them over the music and the fire, but she had a good idea what the tenacious girl was after and soon enough, after an initial polite brush off, Madi's hands wrapped around Bellamy's arm and pulled him up.  Bellamy's pensive expression gave way to that elusive smile once more.  He was still shaking his head, presumably at himself for being so malleable as Madi danced around him. 

With a sigh, Bellamy seemed to accept his defeat and took Madi by the hand, spinning her gracefully, making her illuminate with surprise and delight.  Clarke bit her lip to suppress a laugh, not wanting to deter or embarrass him.  He moved them around the fire with the finesse and skill of a practiced older brother.  It wasn't a measured or choreographed danced.  It was something fun and frivolous and jovial.  Madi laughed at herself when she missed a step, and the others laughed along with her in merriment. 

Tears pooled in Clarke's eyes as Bellamy lifted Madi up to the sky, flooding the desert with Madi's gleeful cry and Bellamy's enraptured smile.  She wiped the tears away before the other could notice but refused to close her eyes, even for a second.  She was determined to absorb and imprint this moment on her soul. 

The music began to fade and the couples slowed their steps until the song ended.  Another, slower song came on before anyone could change it, not that anyone seemed to mind.  Harper wrapped her arms around Monty's neck as they began to sway to the woman's song.  Bellamy and Madi were still smiling at each other.  Madi went on her tip toes to whisper something in Bellamy's ear.  He crouched slightly to meet her, listening intently.  When she finished, he winked at her and whispered something to her in return.  Clarke smiled at the two of them, but when Bellamy's eyes flashed to hers as he spoke to Madi, she felt her stomach drop. 

Madi gave Bellamy a nod before leaving him, returning to Clarke.  She smiled at the girl, moving over on their log to make room for her.  But Madi didn't sit.  Instead she scooped up Clarke's hands and pulled her to her feet. 

"Your turn," Madi said with a mischievous smile. 

"Madi, what-"  But as she saw Bellamy approaching, she froze in realization. 

"No! Madi, Madi, no!" she grumbled to the girl.  But the little scamp simply twirled out of her reach, and back towards their log, just as Bellamy stopped a few feet away from her. 

He looked as unsure as she felt, but he extended his hand to her all the same. 

"You can step on my feet if you want," Bellamy joked, giving her that oh so familiar half smile.  The terrible joke had the desired affect and Clarke relaxed, ever so slightly. 

She narrowed her eyes a fraction and gave him a reciprocating half grin. 

"Don't tempt me," she said as she gathered her courage and took Bellamy's warm, strong hand. 

His fingers curled around hers and he pulled her close to him. 

_And that was not unsettling at all._

She internally shook herself.  It was just a dance, and it was just Bellamy.  But six years without the intimate touch of another person was a long damn time and when Bellamy cautiously draped his arm around her waist and placed her hand on his shoulder, she felt as if her skin were on fire.  She was alarmingly aware of the feel of her body against his, of the broadness of his shoulders and of muscles tensing beneath her touch.  She had been in Bellamy's arms numerous times, in distress and in comfort, but not like this.  Never like this.  This felt purposeful and powerful and intoxicating.  She felt both suffocated and alienated by his embrace.  It was too much and not enough.  And they hadn't even started dancing. 

"Clarke?" Bellamy's soft voice asked. 

Clarke pushed aside her overwhelming thoughts and tried to rein in her very visceral reaction to his closeness.  She cleared her throat before focusing back on the impossible task at hand. 

"Sorry," she said, pausing as she adjusted her hand on his shoulder, "I just haven't done this in awhile."

"Me neither," he admitted quietly, as he reached for Clarke's other hand. 

They smiled softly at each other, an unspoken reassurance.  Bellamy pulled her in just a fraction closer before he began the simple but organized steps, not the chaotic, youthful movements he performed with Madi. Thankfully, he picked a dance her body remembered from her childhood on the ark.  He lead them agilely around the camp.  Neither one were great dancers, but their bodies moved along with the rhythm, listening and responding to each other in harmony. 

Bellamy's hands moved beneath her jacket, gripping her a bit tighter as they passed Harper and Monty.  Clarke looked up at his expression, which seemed wholly unaffected by the touch.  She swallowed the heat threatening to build up within her.  

"So, Octavia-"

"I really don't want to talk about it, Clarke." Bellamy cut her off, his voice distraught but firm. 

"She will wake up, Bellamy," she pushed, because that's what they did. 

Bellamy sighed, his eyes tired and sad. 

"I don't know if I should feel scared or relieved when she does," he confessed to her. 

"A bit of both?" Clarke offered with a half smile.  Bellamy huffed in response, but the corner of his lips twitched. 

They were mostly just swaying now, relaxing into each other, the music enveloping them. 

Clarke caught Madi's eye as the young girl watched the two of them.  Madi gave a devilish grin and dramatically slide off the log in a great swoon.  Scamp.  Clarke half-heartedly glared at the girl's theatrics before she was turned away from her in their movement.  Her small smile faded and her gaze came to rest on Bellamy's chest. 

"I am a selfish person," she whispered. 

"What?" Bellamy replied, a bit taken aback. 

Clarke sighed in self-disappointment. 

"I should feel bad, or guilty or _something_ about the choice you had to make with Octavia.  If for nothing else because I know how much that must have hurt you to do," Clarke's eyes found Madi again and tears threatened for the second time that evening, "But I can't feel anything but gratitude.  You saved her from going to war, or worse."

She looked at Bellamy then, her eyes boring into his, "Thank you, Bellamy."

She couldn't read his expression.  That was one of the new norms now.  She never knew quite where she stood with him anymore.  Bellamy inhaled and exhaled deeply, his jaw clenching and unclenching, staring back at her all the while.  Finally he looked away, dropping his head. 

"You are not a selfish person, Clarke," he said, "And I had a promise to keep."

Clarke frowned at that. 

"When I said that I didn't know-"

"The promise wasn't to you," Bellamy stopped her, raising his head, searching until it landed on something behind her, "The promise was to Madi."

He continued before Clarke could ask. 

"The day we first met, I promised Madi I wouldn't let anything happen to you." 

Clarke was thankful he was looking at Madi and not her, because she had to focus on keeping herself upright.  She felt her skin tingle and her heart race.  _He did it to save her._ It shouldn't have been such a shock to Clarke's system.  Bellamy had been saving her since the days of the dropship.  But still, the realization of just what his actions implied, left her nearly trembling. 

"That's not an easy thing to promise," she whispered, afraid her voice would break. 

Bellamy stopped them completely.  His eyes went to their held hands. 

"Yes," he started, opening his hand to gently intertwine his fingers with hers.  He looked at her then, no amount of doubt in his eyes, "Yes, it is."

Bellamy pulled their laced hands to his chest. 

"Bellamy, I-"

Streaks of light flashed across the dark sky before Clarke could reply.  They both looked up, seeing stars fall through the night, one after another. 

"Make a wish, Clarke," Bellamy whispered, eyes still to the sky. 

She watched him, the light of the fire and the stars danced across his beautiful face. 

In that precious, fleeting moment, she wouldn't even know what to wish for. 

 

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
